Unified snapshot storage management

Abstract

An illustrative approach to managing snapshots streamlines how and when snapshots are generated in a storage management system, such that fewer snapshots may be generated without diminishing the scope of data protection. A novel unified-snapshot storage policy may govern snapshots for any number of subclients. A unified-snapshot job based on the unified-snapshot storage policy enables the illustrative storage management system to automatically discover relevant components and generate at most one snapshot per target logical unit number (“LUN”) in a storage array. Each snapshot may comprise the data of any number of subclients and/or clients in the storage management system. Accordingly, one unified-snapshot job may yield a minimum but sufficient number of snapshots comprising data of all subclients associated with the governing unified-snapshot storage policy. An enhanced storage manager may manage the unified-snapshot jobs. One or more enhanced media agents and/or data agents may participate in the unified-snapshot jobs and in subsequent cataloguing of the snapshots.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method comprising:
 executing, in a storage management system, a unified-snapshot job that generates at most one snapshot for a logical unit number in a plurality of logical unit numbers regardless of the number of clients that store primary data to the respective logical unit number, wherein a storage array hosts the plurality of logical unit numbers; 
 wherein the executing of the unified-snapshot job comprises:
 discovering, by a storage manager that manages the storage management system, a first subclient of a first client,
 wherein the first client generates first primary data that is stored to one or more logical unit numbers in the plurality of logical unit numbers, and 
 wherein the first subclient represents a logical grouping of part of the first primary data, and 
 
 discovering, by a media agent component of the storage management system, a first logical unit number in the plurality of logical unit numbers,
 wherein the first logical unit number comprises data of the first subclient; 
 
 
 registering, by at least one of the media agent and the storage manager, a first association between the generated snapshot and the first subclient; and 
 generating, from the snapshot and not from the primary data stored in the first logical unit number, a secondary copy of the first subclient data. 
 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1  wherein the secondary copy is a backup copy of the first subclient data. 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 1  wherein the secondary copy is an archive copy of the first subclient data. 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 based on the registered first association, cataloguing the snapshot generated in the unified-snapshot job relative to the first subclient, wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by a first data agent associated with the first client. 
 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 based on the registered first association, cataloguing the snapshot generated in the unified-snapshot job relative to the first subclient,
 wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by a first data agent associated with the first client, and 
 wherein the cataloguing associates a file of the first subclient with a datapath to the file in the first snapshot. 
 
 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 after the unified-snapshot job is completed, cataloguing the snapshot generated in the unified-snapshot job relative to the first subclient, based on the registered first association, wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by the media agent. 
 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 after the unified-snapshot job is completed, cataloguing the snapshot generated in the unified-snapshot job relative to the first subclient, based on the registered first association, wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by the media agent, and wherein the cataloguing associates a first file of the first subclient with a first datapath to the first file in the snapshot. 
 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 1  wherein a logical unit number designates a portion of storage in the storage array. 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 1  wherein a logical unit number designates a logical unit of storage in the storage array. 
     
     
       10. The method of  claim 1  wherein the first snapshot is at least one of: a crash-consistent snapshot and an application-consistent snapshot. 
     
     
       11. The method of  claim 1  wherein the storage manager executes on a first computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory;
 wherein the first client comprises a second computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory; and 
 wherein the media agent executes on a third computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory. 
 
     
     
       12. A method for snapshot management in a storage management system that comprises a snapshot-capable storage array hosting a plurality of logical unit numbers, the method comprising:
 generating, by the storage array, a snapshot of a logical unit number hosted by the storage array, wherein the snapshot results from a unified-snapshot job that is based on a storage policy, and wherein the unified-snapshot job comprises:
 selecting, by a storage manager that manages the storage management system, a first subclient that is associated with the storage policy,
 wherein the first subclient represents a logical grouping of part of a first client's primary data, and 
 wherein the first client's primary data is stored to one or more logical unit numbers in the plurality of logical unit numbers, 
 
 selecting, by the storage manager, a second subclient that is associated with the storage policy,
 wherein the second subclient represents a logical grouping of part of a second client's primary data, and 
 wherein the second client's primary data is stored to one or more logical unit numbers in the plurality of logical unit numbers, 
 
 discovering, by a media agent component of the storage management system, the logical unit number that stores data of the first subclient and also stores data of the second subclient, 
 instructing, by the media agent, the storage array that hosts the discovered logical unit number to generate and store the snapshot of the discovered logical unit number,
 wherein the snapshot comprises the data of the first subclient and also comprises the data of the second subclient; and 
 
 
 registering, by at least one of the media agent and the storage manager:
 (a) a first association between the generated snapshot and the first subclient, and 
 (b) a second association between the generated snapshot and the second subclient. 
 
 
     
     
       13. The method of  claim 12  wherein the unified-snapshot job generates at most one snapshot for a given logical unit number that comprises data of one or more subclients regardless of the number of clients that store primary data to the given logical unit number, and
 wherein each of the one or more subclients is associated with the storage policy. 
 
     
     
       14. The method of  claim 12  further comprising:
 after the unified-snapshot job is completed, cataloguing the snapshot relative to the first subclient, based on the registered first association, 
 wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by a first data agent associated with the first client, and 
 wherein the cataloguing associates a file of the first subclient with a datapath to the file in the snapshot. 
 
     
     
       15. The method of  claim 12  further comprising:
 cataloguing the snapshot relative to the first subclient, based on the registered first association, wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by a first data agent associated with the first client; and 
 cataloguing the snapshot relative to the second subclient, based on the registered second association, wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by a second data agent associated with the second client. 
 
     
     
       16. The method of  claim 12  further comprising:
 cataloguing the snapshot relative to the first subclient, based on the registered first association, wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by a first data agent associated with the first client; 
 generating, from the generated snapshot and not from the primary data stored in the discovered logical unit number, a secondary copy of the first subclient's data; and 
 storing the secondary copy to a secondary storage device associated with the media agent. 
 
     
     
       17. The method of  claim 12  wherein the storage manager executes on a first computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory;
 wherein the first client comprises a second computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory; 
 wherein the second client comprises a third computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory; and 
 wherein the media agent executes on a fourth computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory. 
 
     
     
       18. A method comprising:
 generating, by a storage array, a snapshot of a logical unit number hosted by the storage array,
 wherein the logical unit number comprises primary data of one or more subclients regardless of how many clients store respective primary data to the logical unit number, 
 wherein the snapshot results from a unified-snapshot job that is based on a storage policy, 
 wherein the unified-snapshot job generates at most one snapshot of the logical unit number, 
 wherein each of the one or more subclients is associated with the storage policy, and 
 wherein the unified-snapshot job comprises:
 (i) selecting, by a storage manager that manages a storage management system, a first subclient from the one or more subclients associated with the storage policy,
 wherein the first subclient represents a logical grouping of part of a first client's primary data stored in the logical unit number, 
 
 (ii) discovering, by a media agent component of the storage management system, the logical unit number that stores data of the first subclient, and 
 (iii) instructing, by the media agent, the storage array which hosts the discovered logical unit number to generate and store the snapshot of the logical unit number; 
 
 
 after the unified-snapshot job is completed, cataloguing the snapshot of the logical unit number relative to the first subclient, 
 wherein the cataloguing is performed at least in part by a first data agent associated with the first client, and 
 wherein the cataloguing associates a file of the first subclient with a datapath to the file in the snapshot; and 
 based on the cataloguing, generating, from the generated snapshot and not from the primary data stored in the logical unit number, a secondary copy of the first subclient's data; and 
 storing the secondary copy to a secondary storage device associated with the media agent. 
 
     
     
       19. The method of  claim 18  wherein the unified-snapshot job further comprises:
 registering, by at least one of the media agent and the storage manager a first association between the generated snapshot and the first subclient, wherein the cataloguing is based on the registered association. 
 
     
     
       20. The method of  claim 18  wherein the storage manager executes on a first computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory;
 wherein the first client comprises a second computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory, and wherein the data agent executes on the second computing device; and 
 wherein the media agent executes on a third computing device comprising at least one processor and corresponding computer memory.